


Defending the Honor

by LunaUlric



Category: Final Fantasy XV, Kingsglaive
Genre: Brawl - Freeform, F/M, Fluff, Glaive, Honor, Memory, Princess - Freeform, lunyx, otp: the princess and the glaive
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-05
Updated: 2018-01-05
Packaged: 2019-02-28 16:24:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,264
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13275324
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LunaUlric/pseuds/LunaUlric
Summary: Nyx remembers a particular night in the city.





	Defending the Honor

**Author's Note:**

> I planned for this fic months ago. Other story ideas kept pushing it back. It was a struggle to get this fic written because of my writer’s block over the holidays and because I seemed to have forgotten how to fluff (I am so blaming [fabulanova-ffxv](http://fabulanova-ffxv.tumblr.com/) for angsting with me). Long story short, I managed. Hopefully, I did well enough.

He wakes at the slightest touch. Not abruptly. Just enough to gently carry him back to morning. But his eyes remains to a slumbering close because it’s better to pretend for a while. 

He smiles though.   
  
Her weight is still on the other side of the bed, as her fingers start to roam around his bare back. Tracing the tattoos, the vertebrae and the scars.  
  
Especially the scars.   
  
He feels her going through them gently, one by one like they’re words on a book page or they’re destinations on a map or stars on a constellation. Fingertips graze the healed lesions, the remnants of stitches, soothing everything like a dutiful prayer. There’s nothing he can do but utter a soundless surrendering sigh to the soothing touch and keep sleep’s temptation at bay.   
  
As she examines, he minds how he achieved each of these scars. Training accidents. Bar fights. Bullets. A creature’s horns. Explosions. Fire. Her roaming stops at the one below his shoulder. He feels her fingers linger longer than they had with the other ones.   
  
That night in the city. Of course. She remembers it too.

.  
.  
.

“She’ll have the grilled fish and I’ll have the beef skewers.”  
  
“What else?”  
  
Nyx eyed Luna whose head was turned away from him. She was reading the chalk-scribbled names of the food listed on the blackboard above the bar. Still scanning on the dessert section. The waitress with the slightly stained apron was tapping the pencil on the pad. There weren’t many customers so her impatience was just a habitual matter. Not long after the hanging question, Luna eventually turned to her, bright eyed.   
  
“And blueberry cake.”   
  
The waitress jotted it down quickly and left them alone. The glaive and the princess exchanged glances and knowing smiles. Another city excursion in anonymity turned into a dinner date. It didn’t matter where they happened to be or if they were just heading back to the palace after the evening walk. Luna had just pointed to a humble canteen and they had strolled towards it, even if - moments before - he had warned her of the lurking dangers in the neighborhood around them.   
  
As always, his word of caution was received by the princess as an interesting trivia. He had predicted it and, thus, he would do what he does best.   
  
Nyx’s smile faded into a straight line and his eyes began to do the discreet sweep. The nearby decorative mirror provided a murky but constant view of the space behind him, the few people seated away from them and the entrance. No one occupied the barstools. A back door provided a possible exit other than the one they had came into. Beer bottles and, cheap, decorative vases – all that everyday stuff - were placed in their designated spaces. And then, the waitress poured coffee for herself. The kitchen made the hurried noises. The people outside were dwindling to retreat for the night.   
  
Overall, It was…  
  
“All fine.”   
  
Nyx returned his focus to the lady in front of him. Amusement lingered in her eyes.   
  
“It’s all fine.” she repeated, placing her elbows on their table, wearing that Oh-Nyx look. “No need to go about everything.”   
  
He blinked. While he had explored everything by sight like a hawk, she had been watching him closely. Observing him under his radar with an eye as sharp as his.   
  
He made a hint of a smirk. “Better be safe than sorry.”   
  
Corners of her lips quirked up in return. “Just like you said when you showed me how to kick my way out of a grip the other day.”  
  
That made him chuckle. Well, he may have been a bit too paranoid to show her brute self defense even if it was the wisest thing to do for someone in charge of her protection. Knowing how to get yourself out of trouble is better than guessing your way through it. Experience taught him that but no need for her to go through the same process. And Nyx is only glad to give her the luxury of learning all there was to know.   
  
Luna then proceeded to place a hand on top of his. “This is not overtime hours, Nyx.”  
  
He appreciated the reminder. It made him hold her hand and raise it to his lips for a kiss, like he was saying that he was very aware that this was indeed a cherished time with the princess. She simpered in a way that it showcased her blushing cheeks.  
  
The waitress arrived and laid the food on the table as their tummies murmured. As soon as she finally walked away again, Nyx grabbed the empty side of the stick and dug into the meat with his teeth. Unlike him, Luna poked her grilled fish with a fork and chowed down with no rush to fill in the stomach. Differing table manners but neither minded. The only thing synonymous were their hums of praise for the food. The sum of their critique.   
  
“Most of the dishes I’ve had in the palace can’t even compare to this.” Luna gushed as she dug in for another slice. This time she made the morsel bigger.   
  
Nyx shrugged, but he wasn’t unimpressed. “The skewers are miles better than the ones I ordered yesterday.”  
  
She cracked a gentle laugh. “You and your favorite skewers.”   
  
Luna had always teased him about ordering the same thing recently, telling him he was on an obsession to find the best skewers in Insomnia. In his defense, he would order different snacks, desserts or drinks with it. But there weren’t any extra orders this time so the usual excuse wasn’t going to work.   
  
“It’s not a crime, y’know.” The glaive muttered as he chewed. “You’re the one who told me to explore the delicacies with you.”  
  
“Yes, but I meant different kinds of food.”   
  
“Think of it as an experiment, princess.”   
  
Or probably just a reaction to the usual homesickness. Beef skewers were a common item on the menu back home in Galahd.   
  
“Alright. But I’m trying all of them too… ” A playful smile. Then, she raised a utensil to aim. “… Starting right now!”   
  
In a second or two, Luna invaded his plate and snatched a large piece of loose meat from the skewers using her fork. The sauce dripped a little on her plate as she bit on the stolen meat. It happened so fast that Nyx didn’t get a chance to say anything - not that he didn’t want to share his meal. He watched as she pushed aside aristocratic table manners so comfortably like she had been a commoner all along.   
  
Her face loosened up in thought as she chewed. “It’s quite good. I like the sauce.”   
  
Somehow he was surprised to hear that. All along her taste pallet was also as flexible. Maybe sharing this obsession-slash-experiment would be a better idea  
  
But speaking of sauce, there was a smear of it painted on the corner of her lips.   
  
“You got it on your, uh…” he pointed with a finger.   
  
She acquired a piece tissue paper from a tiny metallic holder on the edge of their table and tried to wipe it off. But she missed a portion of it. He tried to point it out again but she couldn’t hit the spot. So he reached with his hand and began to wipe it off with a thumb. Again, she didn’t hide her blushing.   
  
“Must you always defend my honor?” she muttered.   
  
He didn’t know if it was a rhetoric question or not but he couldn’t help but quip “Defending princesses from barbecue sauce is my middle name.”  
  
A cheesy line, yes, but that earned him another set of giggles from her which he always liked to hear.   
  
As they continued to devour their meal, they proceeded to chat. More about food. About Boredom at the palace. About getting scolded by the captain again. About healing Umbra’s foot because he had stepped on a thorn in the garden. And suddenly Nyx noticed they forgot to order drinks. He tried to get the waitress’ attention with a wave but she had turned too quick to ever catch it. He called but she was deaf for it. He stood up to approached instead.  
  
And as he walked by the canteen’s entrance to reach the waitress, someone entered and bumped into him, hitting his shoulder rather hard. Intentionally hard.   
  
“Watch it you rat!” the man warned.   
  
Nyx got a glance of the man. He’s about the same height. Messy hair. Faded leather jacket. Goatee. Sunglasses.  _Who wears sunglasses at night?_  
  
Despite the tinted lenses, he could feel guy looking at him like he was indeed a vermin. But it wasn’t the first time he met people who acted like this.   
  
“What’re you staring at, rat?”   
  
Nyx only raised a brow. Calm and unreacting. People had called him a number of things in this city and most of the time they weren’t complements - “rat” being a common one because of their view of immigrants as pests. Some Insomnians just couldn’t welcome migrants like him as warmly as the king had. Mr. Sunglasses here wouldn’t be any different from that part of populace.   
  
Even if he was used to the vermin talk, Nyx could kick the xenophobia out of this guy’s system for calling him a pest twice. But the glaive wasn’t drunk, or at least not in the mood for a fight.   
  
And he didn’t want to ruin the date with the princess.   
  
So Nyx let it go easily and turned away, hoping the other dude would do the same. He asked the waitress for drinks. She went behind the bar and pulled a couple of bottles of soda from a freezer. She gave it to him and then he returned to his seat.   
  
He gave one of the bottles to Luna. She received it thankfully. However, there was a look on her face. Of course, she heard and saw the chum  
  
“The guy was just rude.” he said, in an attempt to keep it out of discussion.  
  
Luna’s displeasure wasn’t going away yet. “He can’t call you that.”  
  
 “I’m used to it.” he said as he began to munch on the beef again.  
  
“Well, I’m not.”   
  
He knew that tone. That impulsive princess tone. He stopped eating and put the skewers back to the plate.  
  
“Princess…” Nyx soothed like he was taming fire.   
  
Luna still frowned.   
  
He sighed. “Let’s just eat. It’s not worth it.”   
  
When she grabbed her fork and began to poke the grilled fish again, he relaxed and went back to his meal. However, it didn’t even take a minute before she dropped it on the plate and pushed her chair to stand up.   
  
 _Uh Oh._    
  
“Lu!” he called to her as she left the table. It was useless. She ignored his plea to stay and irately marched towards Mr. Sunglasses who was now sitting in one of the bar stools with a bottle in hand. He had to chase after her now. So much for avoiding an unnecessary confrontation.   
  
Before he reached her, the blonde was already catching Sunglasses’ attention. She held her waist. Her eyes were in slits. The glaive tried to intervene, whispering behind her but the princess shushed him with assurance that she’s only going to demand a simple thing – which wasn’t reassuring at all.   
  
Luna faced the offender with no fear.   
  
“You should apologize to him right now.”    
  
Sunglasses seemed confused. He stopped sipping his beer and faced them, lifting the shades up. He didn’t recognize the princess - which was a relief - but the way he looked at her suggestively already made Nyx want to mangle him instantly. But he composed, again, choosing to avoid a potentially physical scuffle. Even if avoidance was out of the question now, there was still a possibility getting through with it peacefully.   
  
The guy mustered a demeaning laugh. “What? Apologize to the rat? You’re out of your mind blondie.”   
  
That would only aggravate her of course.  
  
“I’m giving you a chance to redeem yourself.” Luna declared, unwavering. “The one you offended is a valued member of the Kingsglaive. A hero who saved people from the Empire’s deamons. The least you can do is to show respect.”  
  
That should do it. If the guy was willing to listen.  
  
Sunglasses paused, probably processing what was just said to him. However, there was no retreat with this guy. He stood up, and stared at Luna and Nyx as if they were the dumbest people in all Eos. But he eyed Nyx especially. Great. More vermin talk.   
  
But then there was more to it.  
  
“Take your skank back to the sewers or else she gonna get slapped for minding my business.”  
  
Okay, now…  _Just hold on for a moment._  
  
Nyx instinctively stepped in between this princess and this punk. Staying passive was out of the window now. Calling him names was one thing. He could let it go. He really was used to it and was too sober to ever care for it.   
  
But to disrespect and threaten the woman he loved? That already merited a punch to the gut.   
  
Luna was still unshakable despite the insult. The glaive was stoned faced, but there was more aggression in his stare. Colder and deadlier.   
  
“You’re gonna wish you didn’t say that.” Nyx fumed, in a steady but grumbling voice.   
  
The idiot pulled down his sunglasses, smiling, showing teeth. All masks for fear. Nyx knew the stare down was working. Especially now that the guy knew he faced a glaive. Nevertheless, Sunglasses approached – probably hoping he could mirror the stare. Probably glaring behind shades. A laughable attempt.   
  
“You don’t want to mess with me, rat. You don’t want your skank to see ya bleeding.”   
  
Ah. The taunt. Classic.  
  
Nyx didn’t bother to say a comeback because he already spotted a balled fist.   
  
The sudden opportunistic punch. Another classic.  
  
In a not-so-surprising move, Sunglasses threw fist towards Nyx’s face. The glaive swiftly stepped aside on time, pushing Luna away to a safer spot behind him. In less than second, he grabbed the guy’s outstretched arm by the wrist and twisted it into a position. Sunglasses didn’t even have time to yelp. Nyx pushed the arm behind the dude and, with the free hand, slammed the guy’s head on the bar. He pressed it hard on the wood while he continued to twist the arm to a degree.   
  
The sunglasses were now teetered and bent on the idiot’s face as he cried out in pain.   
  
“Now.” Nyx began. “Apologize to her.”   
  
“Like the hell I would-“  
  
Nyx twisted it a notched  
  
“Aah! Ow ow! Don’t break my arm man!”  
  
“Apologize!”   
  
“Okay! okay! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m not gonna say that again!”   
  
Nyx let him go and the guy started to scram, grabbing his precious shades from the bar. Nyx scoffed at the coward. The dude even slammed on the door a little before he could open it to run away from his humiliation. The only expense to the commotion was the waitress’ and other customer’s shock and a spilt bottle of beer.   
  
Luna was wide eyed. Then her brows creased. “I was handling it.”   
  
Nyx shook his head. “The guy would’ve ended up harassing you if I hadn’t intervened.”   
  
“Well you taught me self defense. You should at least let me apply what I’ve learned from you.”   
  
The glaive sighed, looking at the princess’ angelic face, noticing a hint of a smirk. “Not like this, princess.”   
  
They would go back and forth in this but they ended up apologizing for the commotion to everybody and settled in their seat. The confrontation didn’t ruin the date after all. They continued on their meal in peace, chatting, laughing. Putting all of it behind them. They finished their meal satisfied. Only the bottles of soda were left to consume. Nyx remembered a funny incident about the glaives warping beer out of the HQ building. He began telling about it, intending to make her laugh again.    
  
He was in the middle of the story when he heard someone or something entered the door. He eyed the blurry mirror and saw at least six men that had entered the canteen. All with leather jackets and sunglasses.   
  
Then, it dawned on him.   
  
Mr. Sunglasses, the one currently among the group , the one who was now pointing a finger at Nyx, belonged to a gang.   
  
Luna noticed them too. The smile was gone from her face.   
  
One of the sunglass dudes began to pace slowly towards them. The leader, probably. The others began to follow. They all had that air to them that they feel so cool with their getup despite looking really idiotic with those sunglasses.   
  
“I smell a rat!” the leader hollered. He spoke as if he was chewing a gum. “Don’t worry people. We’re just here for an extermination job. We don’t want the vermin stinkin’ the place, do we?”   
  
Nyx eyed the back door. He mouthed to her to get to it before they get trapped. They both got up calmly. He let her walk towards it first so he could fall behind to create a barrier between her and the gang. As expected, they noticed the couple.   
  
“Where ya going, rat? We’re not done here!”   
  
And then two of the guys rushed to the back door before the pair could. Blocking it.  _There goes the exit_.

Nyx was expecting it. He was always expecting the worst.  
  
Nyx turned and maintained composure. He looked at the punks with the same sharp stare as he gave one of them before. They were nothing else but a local gang looking for trouble. No training for fighting, other than the experience they earned as just by smashing heads on the street. Amateurs compared to a veteran glaive like him.

But no. He shouldn’t underestimate them completely. They still posed danger.   
  
Firstly, they held weapons. A pipe with barbed wire wrapped around the end. Metal chains. Bottles with shattered bottoms. The leader himself boasted a butterfly knife. Those things were enough to make the other few customers rush to the door, as well as the waitress. Even the cooks - two aproned men – succumbed to retreat after emerging to check out the fuss.  
  
Secondly, Nyx didn’t have his kurkis with him. So warping wasn’t an option. 

And thirdly, they had their unpredictability. And no matter how amateurish they seemed to be and how true it is, being unpredictable can be deadly.  
  
“You had it coming rat.” the leader declared. “You messed with one of us; you mess with all of us.”   
  
Nyx pulled Luna closer to him, planning the demise of the four in front of him and minding the two behind her. He needed them to attack first. So he pushed it.   
  
He scoffed and smirked. “Has anybody told all of you that you don’t have to wear shades at night?”   
  
They didn’t answer to that. But sure enough, they didn’t like when he dissed their ‘uniform’.  
  
Sunglass leader attacked first with his knife. Nyx evaded, grabbed the arm and elbowed his face hard. As the man went down, he grabbed a stool and threw it at the three behind him. The wooden legs hit their faces causing them to stumble down for a while.   
  
Nyx turned around and glimpsed Luna struggling to escape a hold by the arm. The gang member she faced off was also struggling to block her kicks.   
  
The glaive rushed to her aid as soon as he saw but someone caught his neck with a chain. His hand blocked it but the force was enough to pull him back to a deadly hold. He was dragged to a table, his back slammed on it. He struggled to breathe.   
  
One of them, while sporting a bleeding cut on the forehead, raised a pipe while the one keeping Nyx down held the chain tighter. Nyx gagged for air but his foot was at the right place at the right time. He kicked the guy holding the pipe. Right between the legs. The guy went down.   
  
Then Nyx rolled. The chains came loose. He got up, feeling a bit winded, and punched the chains guy, thrice, before he could swing at him. Without a pause, another came at Nyx from behind. He felt a sting on his back but he was quick enough to move further from what impale him, and to turn and barrel his fist to the side of the punk’s face. He quicklyfollowed it with a heavy punch on the gut to keep him down.    
  
After that, Nyx took a quick look nursing his sore neck. All four men were down. Half were unconscious and the other half were squirming in pain.   
  
He turned to Luna with worry. He saw her, upright, a little shaken but, otherwise, okay. She was keeping a tight hold on a beer bottle just in case her opponents decided to stand up again. There were two men on the ground where she stood. Both unconscious. One had shards - of what was once a vase - littered around his head. The other had a bruise flowering on the forehead.   
  
Pride and relief overtook him. All that self defense training didn’t go to waste.   
  
Her eyes spotted him. Her face painted relief as well. He approached, took her hand and led her to the exit quickly.   
  
It was probably nearing midnight. People were scarcer now. Lamp posts were the only things that offered to lessen the cold quietude. The glaive and princess were safe at last but the defeated gang they left behind was bound to get up and call for more their sunglasses bunch. So they still ran and he led her to deeper and smaller streets.   
  
Luna spoke. “You’re bleeding.”   
  
Nyx wasn’t surprised. The last guy he took down was holding a broken bottle he managed to poke him deep enough. But not too deep, he felt.   
  
“It’s just a scratch.” he said.   
  
Luna, still holding his hand, stopped to anchor. He halted too and turned around to face her. She gave him a look that defeated his tough guy façade.   
  
He sighed. “Alright. But let’s find a safe place first.”  
  
A couple of turns later, they found a dead ended alleyway. Windows on the walls eliminated a corner. There was a three-stepped stairs below a door. Nyx could feel his blood sticking to his shirt and the cold wind from the wetness of it. They sat on the steps and Luna scooted closer, wrapping her slender arms around him. Her hands slid behind him, going under his shirt. They went up his back, one on the wound below his shoulder and the other stroking his skin on the uninjured side.   
  
Her touch alone was causing him to blush.   
  
Luna smiled with her eyes before closing them to pray. As soon as she uttered, he felt the satisfying warmth on his back. He closed his eyes to savor it and his head lowered to rest it on her shoulder. After the healing was done, he felt her shake a little in laughter. He joined with his voiceless chuckle, his forehead still snuggled on the crook of her neck. She brought her hands on the back of his neck, making circles on it. She sighed against his cheek.  
  
“That was an interesting date.” she mumbled, he could feel blissful mood on her voice. “I hope my notorious stubbornness didn’t annoy you too much.”  
  
He laughed again before lifting his head to inspect those mesmerizing, baby blue eyes.   
  
“It’s a turn on actually.”   
  
“You found my impulsive nature attractive?” she asked grinning.   
  
“Of course, your highness.” he replied, getting lost in her affectionate stare. “Besides… I never had anyone defend my honor before.”   
  
She hummed cheerfully while her hands still clung to him. He felt her pulling him closer until their noses almost bumped.   
  
“I would never let anyone disrespect my glaive.”   
  
Nyx felt the tingle, especially when he heard the last two words. He echoed it in his head,   
  
“ _My_ glaive…” she repeated like there was a need to be territorial – to stamp a claim.   
  
Yes. He was her glaive. Hers and no one else’s.   
  
He looked at her eyes one last time before bringing up his hand on her cheek and moving closer until….  
  
.  
.  
.  
  
“Are you dreaming?”   
  
The voice wakes him up from the memory, ending it for him too soon. He was back at the lazy morning with her on the other side of the bed.   
  
“I was.” he mumbles. “You stopped me right before the good part actually.”   
  
As soon as her fingers leave the scar that held the memory, he turns to face her. She lies on her side too, the crumpled covers masking her figure. Her eyes speak of the blithe of this serene moment.  
  
“Maybe I can fix that for you.”    
  
She closes the gap between them. Lips to lips. Softly and steadily. She smiles into the kiss right before parting from him. All of it warms him up, telling him she was daydreaming the same thing.   
  
She retreats to a pretend slumber with a satisfied sigh. Her hand rests on the pillow, fingers wiggling into the silky fabric before resting to a stop. He spots the wedding ring on it. The silver band identical to his. Sunlight from the window made it shimmer.    
  
Instinctively, he reaches to embrace her. He, too, goes back to sleep because the morning calls for more of it. This time though, with her in his protective cuddle.   
  
“My glaive…” she breathes softly, claiming his heart over and over. 


End file.
